- Buffi Duberman

by Buffi
1 August 2022
Blog

I hope your summer is full of joy, and that you are spending it doing what you love with people you love (which also means YOU).

I just wanted to jump in and say HI ….and BYE.
This is my last newsletter for a while.

I’m going on sabbatical for 5 weeks and will be completely offline the entire time.
I’ll be exploring parts of the world I have never seen before, and my days will be full of silence, observation, writing, and zooming out – taking stock of the year I’ve had so far, and zooming in – discovering even more layers of my soul.

This year I’ve personally coached nearly 90 new clients, organized 700+ old blog posts, written 50 new ones, filmed over 100 video lessons and written 120 workbooks. I’ve expanded my team, walked for days, fell down 9 stairs, learned how to play exactly 1/2 a song on the piano, got really sick and lost 7 kilos, failed at rolling my own sushi, and rode an electric scooter for the first time.

I’m leaving all that behind, together with my bra, makeup, and social media, and I’m taking stock of my delicious life.

Is it great business sense to remove myself from the Attention Equation for 5 weeks while I actually should be staying top of mind as I have a fabulous course to promote? (It’s called Great in 8, we start in October, I work with a highly-motivated group – max 6 people – for 8 weeks, and it will change how you communicate in English. But I’m not promoting it while I’m away. Oh, and did I mention it’s also the last time I’ll be offering this program?)

Nope. Not great business sense. Not at all.
Dropping social media and my newsletter means my course might not sell out.
I might lose money, clients, recommendations.

But you know what?
I have something that very few people in business seem to have these days.

And it’s…enough.

I’ve had enough promotion, for now.
I’ve had enough social media, for now.
I’ve had enough typing, looking as screens, and overdelivering for now.

I have NOT had enough time looking at the leaves in the wind.
Or making a cup of coffee last an hour.
Or not looking at my watch or my phone all day.

That starts now.
And I’m going to treasure every minute of it.

I could put all my social posts on a timer and leave the building.
People could continue to see me flash by on all their devices.
But what if someone leaves a comment? Or asks a question?
I won’t be there to answer it.
I never make a promise that I know I cannot keep.
I won’t post if I can’t respond.
So I’m not posting.

My promise to me, and to you, is that I’ll be back in a few weeks, full of energy and new insights.

My husband took this sneaky pic of me last year. I was offline for 9 days when he captured me, full of wonder, watching the waves on Lake Geneva, feeling so deeply grateful and moved that I could take it all in without sharing it with the whole world.

I want that carefree look on my face again.
That woman is still there, buried under an English Communication Coach coating.
Let the peeling begin.